Kevin Cuneo: Falcons prepare for Dyngus Day

Kevin Cuneo

March 25, 2013 12:39 AM

Kevin Cuneo

March 25, 2013 12:39 AM

They're already gearing up at the Polish Falcons Nest 610, 431 E. Third St., for the annual Dyngus Day celebration on April 1. Dan Wisinski said the club will serve special Polish food, and there will be music to go along with the squirt guns and whacking with pussy willows. It's how some maidens chose their husbands back in the old days. If you think this is a uniquely Erie custom on the day after Easter, check out Buffalo's annual Dyngus Day blast, which in 2012 attracted more than 100,000 revelers. The fun at the Falcons starts at 3 p.m. and continues until 10. ... David Wallace, who knows his Erie history cold, points out that the U.S. Brig Lawrence was used as a hospital ship on the way back home following the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813. Usher Parsons did such good work tending to the injured crewmen that only two were lost, Henry Van Poole and Richard Williams. On May 25, a new monument will be dedicated to the victims of the battle, who were reinterred at the Erie Cemetery in 1859. ... This nasty spring weather can't be good for the start of the baseball season, which is just days away. Hope they fire up those overhead heaters at Jerry Uht Park for the early-season Erie SeaWolves games. ... When my family attended the recent Home & Garden Show with an Erie native who's been living in Cleveland for much of the last decade, she couldn't get over the beauty of the Bayfront Convention Center. She said the views from the center's large windows made it feel as if we were floating on the water. ... Chautauqua Institution has added Garrison Keillor and his "Prairie Home" radio crew to its schedule at the amphitheater on Aug. 2. Keillor was a big hit when he brought his show to the Warner Theatre some years back. Chautauqua tickets go on sale April 1.

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When the Eagles perform at Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena on July 9 and at Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center on July 23, the tickets should be scarce. But I notice that the prices of tickets to the Cleveland show range from $158 to $1,049. ... A lot of activity around Sean Candela's Sara's restaurant at the entrance to Presque Isle indicates that it will open as usual on April 1, which is always a sign that spring is just around the corner. We can use some warm spring days, that's for sure. ... College basketball fans are in their glory, as the NCAA Tournament continues. Don Bruschi sent a clipping from Dayton University's alumni magazine, which features Erie native Carmen Riazzi, one of the region's best all-time basketball players. Dayton's basketball offices were named for Riazzi, who led the Flyers to the NIT championship games in 1955 and '56. The second team was rated No. 2 in the nation for much of the season -- Dayton's best ranking ever. Riazzi settled in Dayton, where he's had great success in business and has raised his large family. ... Aimee Agresti's Erie relatives are excited about the release of her latest novel, "Infatuate," published by Harcourt. She's a staff writer for Us Weekly. ... Many events and promotions are scheduled this spring to mark the 40th anniversary of Secretariat's Triple Crown victories. Everything from whiskey decanters to art work will celebrate the great racehorse. The best Secretariat painting I ever saw hangs on the wall of Lou Porreco's office at his Honda dealership. A year ago, when I chatted on the phone with Penny Chenery, we both lamented that Disney's "Secretariat" did not turn out to be a better movie. It has so many factual errors, and the portrayal of Erie native Andrew Beyer is comical.